Weekly News Briefs: Feb. 13

Former Campaign Operator to Kasim Reed linked to Atlanta City bribery scandal

WABE reported that Mitzi Bickers, the former campaign runner for Mayor Kasim Reed’s “get out the vote campaign”, is new a focal point of a federal bribery investigation. The U.S. Justice Department requested hundreds of documents that detailed the conspiration of city contractors E.R. “Elvin” Mitchell and Charles Richard Jr. Both construction owners pleaded guilty to bribery, paying more than a million dollars to secure city contracts. Bickers’ name is on many of the documents purged, but the former Atlanta Public Schools board member has not been charged with any crime so far.

National

President Trump strategizes his next move, after restraining order on travel ban

The Trump administration has no plans to appeal the decision blocking its travel ban to the Supreme Court. However, the administration remains adamant in keeping the executive order intact according to CNN reports. CNN speculated that the president’s next possible move could very well come in the form of a new executive order, one that is more concise in its intentions and purpose. For example, it could outright proclaim that legal permanent residents are not affected by the travel restrictions.

Global

War criminal Charles Taylor calls allies from maximum security prison

The BBCreports that the former president of Liberia, Charles Taylor called his political allies from HM Prison Frankland. Taylor is currently serving a 50-year sentence for supporting rebels who performed multiple war crimes in Sierra Leone. The detainee allegedly made the call to denounce his detractors and rally his supporters. The fact that this call was made at all is of great concern to Alain Werner, director of the non-governmental organization: Civitas Maxima, which builds cases against Liberian war criminals. Werner fears that Taylor may interfere with the upcoming Liberian presidential election.